movers and shakers. >> we will be able to see change. >> gripping. inspiring. entertaining. "talk to al jazeera". only on al jazeera america. >> on the defense - saudi arabia said it shot down a skud missile fired by yemen from houthi fighters. good to have you alone, i'm david foster you're watching al jazeera, live from doha. also coming up on a mission of reconciliation. pope francis arrives in bosnia for a one-day visit the battle for votes. politicians in turkey hold final rallies ahead of sunday's elections. we visit the private prison in new zealand.

its job is to make sure that inmates don't come back. well first up the latest developments on the war in yemen, and saudi air defenses are reported to have shot down a missile fired into the kingdom. state tv said it was fired from houthi rebels from their stronghold. this was a few hours after three saudi soldiers and a border guard are said to have been killed in an attack by houthis in border areas. we have the details. >> reporter: this is what houthi allied tv describes as an outpost on the southern border. yemen government fighters say they took control of the area area in jazzan.

dozens were killed. renegade soldiers allied to ali abdullah saleh and houthis were involved. there has been skirmishes on saudi arabia's 1500km border. saudi arabia said the air defense system shot down a scud mile, and they believe the target was an air base in the sworn city. >> the houthis - surprisingly we didn't expect a saudi invasion. but for the houthis to invade 60 to 70km inside and continue. this is a serious issue. they must deal with it seriously. >> reporter: the saudi-led coalition began its exhibition. since the air strikes have been hitting houthi positions in several areas.

the houthis and ali abdullah saleh loyalists are trying to take territory from tribes loyal to the government in exile. residents say their homes are hit by heavy weapons, and pro-government forces are resisting advances, but there are hopes to bring all sides to a settlement. the unrur says the houthis, and the president -- u.n. says the houthis and president ali abdullah saleh's government agrees to send representatives to a meeting in june. >> it's looking hopeful, and the community hopes that they'll go to geneva, and resolve it. if the last two months showed the world anything it showed us by bombing the yemeni people it will not solve the problems. there has to be negotiations between the parties. >> reporter: more than 2,000 died and over a million displaced in the fighting. for now, all yemenies can do is hope for an end to the fighting. >> reporter: we are getting reports that the taliban have

taken control of an area in nearby afghanistan. it is in balakstan province and the taliban launched a number of attacks. 300 fighters are said to be in yamgan district. a remote mountain as area. let's go to nicole johnson on the phone from the area. do you know more about what is happening up there. deaf conversationlocal police are saying that numbers were high they were attacked from four different directions. that district had around 200 afghan security forces. they couldn't take on the attack so they did a retreat to the mountains to get out of the way. we are hearing from a local mp in that province. seven police have been killed

three taken hostage. that information has not been confirmed by the afghan security force, but they have told us that they are launching an operation to try to retake this distribute. there'll be some helicopter support, not a great deal. the air force is limited. there's a way to try to retake that. that area in the far north of the afghanistan bordering pakistan, has seen a lot of fighting over six weeks. it has become a new front along with neighbouring kuehned us province with the taliban. >> why, why in particular the north-east remote mountainous area. the taliban seems to be throwing a great deal of effort to establish a stronger presence. why in particular that part of the country? >> that's a good question. there's a number of good arguments about why the taliban

decided to focus on the north, instead of the usual south. the main answer seems to be that that area in the north is more exposed. we have seen that right now. there aren't as many security forces. it is perhaps, for the taliban to make an appearance. we have a heavier presence of afghan security forces. the taliban this time around is focussing attention on the north. now, in the may elections there has been a big campaign under way between the taliban and afghan security forces. in kunduz province there was fighting and in that situation in kuehned use, the taliban got -- kuehne does, the taliban got within a couple of kilometres of the afghan government. they had to send in reinforcements from kabul and the south. trying to retake the area and

push the taliban away. it seems that right now they are back for the attack in the particular province and district. >> we'll leave it there, thank you. now, the head of the roman catholic church, pope francis, is about to address beam in the bosnian capital, sarajevo. he is using the trip to call for more reckon sill yags between bosnian serb crowate and muslim communities, after the boss ni yn war killing 100,000 people let's have a look at the live shot. there was wonderful singing. let's listen in for a short while before going to our correspondent. [ singing ]

laurence lee, beautiful sounds there, but obviously still a disturbed country. 20 years after the end of the war, reconciliation is still needed. yes, and the whole point clearly, of pope francis's visit is to reinforce that sense of reconciliation. when he addresses this catholic-largely crow at conversation shortly, he arrived -- crow at shortly he arrived not long ago. to the rapture. we have been saying earlier on this morning, the seen of symbolism. the choir that you are listening to is primarily a serb orthodox

choir singing for a catholic crow at congregation -- crow at congregation, that's the idea and the throne from pope francis has been made for him by a muslim carpenter from - moth of sarajevo offered to make this. and the catholic church accepted the offer. these are the things that pope francis is using the visit for, to emphasise what is possible so the different ethnic communities that fought so bitterly, can, to some degree or another, get along with each other. >> reporter: with the loss of 100,000 lives, it was a terrible conflict. how is the pope going use his time to bring the community together. you can see what is happening. what about later? >> yes, he has already met the three presidents. presidential citizens.

each of the three in the group. later this afternoon, he'll hold an interreligious talks as well from the three religions. they are seeing this army as part of a pattern through the 20 years since 1995, next month the president will be hear to remember the horrors of screb ren itsa. so it is going to be one of those years when the outside world will come back. and i think the point of the pope's visit now, as opposed to any other time is to start that process off. thank you laurence lee in sarajevo 396 people are known to have died in the capsizing of the chinese cruise ship, making it the deadliest boat disaster in

decades. more bodies were found friday night and saturday. many are still missing. the "eastern star" went down in the yangtze river on monday with elderly tourists on board. it's thought severe winds overturned the boat. the captain and first engineer are in police custody. there are 14 survivors. two iraqi soldiers and shia militia have been killed after i.s.i.l. fired artillery shells at a military air base in central iraq. it was east of ramadi. the iraqi army retreated to the base after i.s.i.l. took control of the city. iraqi army and shia militia are trying to halt the advance in anbar province. it's the final day of election campaigning in turkey ahead of a vote seen as a performance test for the abbing party. the ruling party is looking for a fourth term in office facing

a myriad of challenges. we take a closer look. >> reporter: there are more than 2 million syrian refugees living in turkey. camps like this are symbolic of the devastating war raging there. these images are a stark reminder of the toll the war is having here in turkey. syrians fleeing the violence seek refuge in cities like those in the capital. to date it's crossed the turkish government 10 billion to host them. critics say it's support for the syrian opposition and the refusal to do business with bashar al-assad worsened the crisis. and suggests that this is not that party's only diplomatic missystem. months before the uprising turkey enjoyed relations with damascus. so much so that governments held a joint cabinet meeting and agreed to scrap visa restrictions, and the cosy relations with egypt soured after turkey voiced opposition to the 2013 military coup.

and ankara has all but cut off ties and tel aviv following the 2008 war in gaza and attacks killing turks later. this is a professor of international relations, and is critical of the foreign policy. >> turkey is not an immediate power. turkey cannot take behaviour. you cannot take party for one side and try to change the situation in one country. >> this man moved from the foreign ministry to become prime minister. he relates accusations that the party interests are at the heart of the government's diplomacy. >> we proposed a proactive foreign policy and based on certain venues rather than interests, democracy, values like supporting human dignity turkey's foreign policy not only helped to define the rule

over the past decade but created new realities in politics. the bid to become a regional power known support and criticism. this man says that the criticism is not warranted. >> any actors blame turkey and turkish leadership for changing foreign policy orientation. this is not the case. when we look at the regional environment in which turkey is located, we see that the other sides of the relationship other actors were changed dramatically. >> there's no doubt turkey's roll changed when the ac party came to power stay with us here on al jazeera, we have this coming up...

[ gunfire ] ..u.n. holds an emergency session as the number of ceasefire violations in ukraine continues. the governor of okinawa tells opposition why he wants american troops off the japanese island. you'd hear screaming he would come back a destroyed person you can only imagine what happened to him... >> accused of killing an american soldier at 15... >> i start hearing americans and their screaming and i thought, umm i'm just gonna throw this grenade... >> after 13 years, he's now out on bail an exclusive interview guantanamo's c

these are the top stories this hour on al jazeera - afghan security forces tried to retake a district from taliban fighters, to the north-east of the country. taliban seized control after

launching an assault in badakhshan province attacking local police force from four directions. three soldiers and a border guard have been attacked by houthis in border areas of jazzan and najran. missiles were shot, fired by houthi rebels. pope francis is addressing people in the bosnian capital sarajevo he's there for a day urging reconciliation between crow at catholic and muslim communities. ash carter called for steps to respond to moscow said behaviour in the eastern ukraine. the security council discussed the latest fighting in the east of ukraine. nadine basha reports. >> reporter: ukranian army

troops in the center of the town. they say it is firmly under control after two days of fierce fighting. it's left nearly 30 people dead and some of the worst violence since the ceasefire deal known as the minsk agreement that ukraine and russia signed in february. ukraine's president petro porashenko told a news conference that 50,000 ukranian troops have been deployed in the conflict zone, reacting to a huge russian build-up. >> translation: impossible or not, i can tell you the amount of russian troops near the ukrainian border and the amount of troops in the eastern territory is unprecedented. >> reporter: that theme was tape up by the united nations envoy. >> the recent provocative steps indicate russia's kneptions to

escalate the confrontation in the process. the recent assaults are an intent of the russian side to exert pressure on international players. on the eve of important international attempts. >> for his part russia's envoy was accused of killing civilians. >> i will not go into a discussion with my ukranian colleague on the charter of the quagss and international law and humanitarian law. to provisions of which has been violated. and the so-called ain't terrorists a punitive operation in the east of ukraine. addressing the session via video link, the deputy head of ukraine urged both sides to take steps to avoid more fighting.

>> developments suggest that the military track has not been abandoned in favour. the events undermine the need to break the cycle of violence now, before further escalation takes place. the leader of the self-styled donetsk people's republic said the latest fighting killed around 400 soldiers. whether or not that is accurate, what some call a low-level war is far from over. south korea has importantly detected nine more cases of middle east respiratory syndrome, known as m.e.r.s. 53 people have the virus, and the new cases have been traced back to the first patient who returned from saudi arabia. his wife has recovered and was the first person discharged from hospital the governor of the japanese island okinawa was told the u.s.

troops will remain despite protests against their presence. they have been in washington to argue against plans to move the soldiers to a new base. here is mike viqueira. >> governor of the japanese precinct of okinawa is a man struggling to be heard. visiting the state department and on capitol hill. sitting with senators john mccain and jack reed. his mission to convince anyone that will listen, a military facility on his island and will have to go. >> through the air corp station, encircled by a city of 100,000 it's more than a nuisance to the people that live nearby. it's a danger. there are accidents and a helicopter crash, and crime including rape committed by american servicemen. now a stall to move the marines met with protest.

a small amada of kayaks and boats take to speed at the news cycle. expanding the base would damage an eco system. mostly they want the marines off the island. >> we have a governor opposed to the land reclamation here. he was voted in by a huge margin. the people are supporting us. >> that governor campaigned against the u.s. bases and in november was elected in a landslide. more than half the 50,000 u.s. military personnel in japan are stationed on okayina way, but the island was tiny. half of the land mass. abbingin awans think it's not ware. it was rated the highest, and income the lowest. now tourism is booming. while the u.s. presence was seen as an economic life line for abbingin awa it's now --

okinawa, it's seen as a drag on growth. most would be better without it. but there's a problem. the government in tokyo wants the base to stay. when the governor came to washington to meet with officials and walk the hauls, he didn't get very far. in april, president obama welcomed japanese prime minister shinzo abe to washington. as regional tensions with neighbouring china rise, most agree the marines should stay. >> the new guidelines compliment an effort to realign, including okinawa while in d.c. okinawa suffered a setback. after a meeting in state americans released a statement reading in part: lirn line >> reporter: do you consider this a rebuke, are you

disappointed? >> what i felt from their official expressions is i felt they understood the issue of okinawa deeper. >> reporter: in the struggle to be heard onaga sees a silver lining. the voices of okinawans are heard around the world. in malaysia nine bodies have been found on a mountain. it was near the tourist destination early friday triggering landslides and sent granite boulders down from the peak. at least 11 died. eight are still missing. hundreds of students have been protesting about gun violence in the united states city chicago. nearly 150 people have been murdered in the city so far this year. john helped ron was at the rally. >> the march is called i am for peace. it began with a few students

and involved 2,000 people marching though the streets of chicago's south side. this year organizers hope for 3,000 people. >> i want people to be aware of what goes on in chicago, and let people know that we are not a city full of bad things there are positive things going on, such as the movement today. >> it happened at the beginning of summer, because that's when the violence begins. 425 people were in chicago streets, and in a memorial day weekend that kicks off. last month, 56 people were shot 12 people killed here in chicago. it's gotten so bad that film director spike lee based his new movie, a common term the people use to describe violence that rivals that in iraq. it's not really designed to stop violence it is designed to raise attention. that's why the mayor is here. the hope is that people will be involved in trying to stop the

violence in chicago, but with a number of killings we had this year, that appears to be an uphill battle. >> in honduras thousands rallied against government corruption. they want the resignation of the president after he admitted his election campaign took money from people linked to embezzlement. he denied personnel involvement. a new state of the art prison in new zealand is about to welcome its first inmate. the main task is to prevent reoffending through training and even paid work. wayne hay went to look at the facility. rrkets there's no -- the referee: there's no >> reporter: there's no prisoners here yet. the main purpose when they do is not to have them back. it's not about scaring them

straying but providing opportunity. >> what we need to remember is the main aim is to get the men into employment. we know jobs is the best path to reintegration. >> the guards are called reentrying grace officers. there are added extras. this is a high security wing. here the inmates have access to computers in their cell. no internet. they are used for study and, to a certain extent to plan the day. they have telephones loaded with pre-approved numbers to keep in touch with family members on the outside. when they are not in their cells, thousands of inmates will have access to training and ultimately paid employee. pauley was a young maori before friends convinced him to et get

out of south auckland. he went to gaol, and wishes he was given the tools to better himself while inside. >> a loft of us affected - people don't realise what options are available out there for them. we sort of just used to getting stuck in a cycle. and, you know we sort of are looking for a way out, but it's a matter of knowing where to look. where to turn to, who to ask. >> with certain targets. the governor will congratulate the government. they worry about a lack of transparency when mixing enterprises with prisons. in the business. you need to have prisons. cop flicking priorities. >> there has been criticism that the facility will be too soft and will not act as a deterrent. it's clear this is a prison

you'll find blogs from people such as wayne on our website, aljazeera.com. also all the headline stories, and bagged information -- background information as well. that's aljazeera.com. >> on my honor, i will do my best. it's the way every boy scout and scout leader begins the official oath. two years ago, the century-old organization relaxed its ban on gay scouts but not on adult volunteers who supervise them. recently, the national president of the boy scouts told the group the country is changing and the ban on gay leaders should be lifted too.